When I Come Around
by Lowrider
Summary: The life of a teenaged nerd is not one to be envied, as Baljeet will readily tell anyone. Nerds need love too, though, despite Buford's insistence that no one could ever like Baljeet like that. A certain secret admirer begs to differ, but who is it?
1. Chapter 1

Baljeet leaned down and switched his alarm clock off seconds before it went off itself. There was no point in listening to it go off when he was already awake. People often asked him why he even bothered setting the alarm if he was always up before it went off, but his reasoning was that it was a failsafe practice in case he actually did sleep in one day. It was one of many of his quirks that nobody seemed to understand.

That done, Baljeet went back to his mirror and looked himself over one last time for the morning. His white, buttoned shirt and khaki pants were impeccably clean and his black shoes, despite now being several months old, were still in very good shape. He smiled at himself, though his satisfaction didn't last long. At fifteen years of age now, he was the very picture of a teenaged nerd; especially when compared to his friends at Danville High. To make matters worse, several of his closest friends had hooked up romantically either just before or just as the school year had begun. As much as they tried to convince him they still enjoyed his company, Baljeet had the distinct feeling that he was very much a fifth wheel to their activities anymore.

The only person he knew he could count on for any kind of attention anymore was the one person whose brand of attention he didn't want anymore. Buford van Stomm, now a rising member of the defense for Danville High's football team, still found some way to torment him on a daily basis. Just before high school had begun, Baljeet had hoped the whole bully/nerd dynamic that had defined their interactions for years was about to end. His first experience being hoisted up the Danville High flagpole by his underwear courtesy of Buford shattered any such hopes.

Just as his angst threatened to truly ruin his mood for the morning, the one thing that always managed to get him back on track wafted by his nose: the smell of his mother making paratha, a traditional Indian breakfast item, in the kitchen. Baljeet shook off his doldrums, grabbed his backpack, and headed for the kitchen where he was greeted with a glass of orange juice and a stack of three paratha sat on a plate waiting specifically for him. His friends had always thought paratha were just a version on pancakes, but only he knew their true wonder. He couldn't fathom a better breakfast item.

"Shubh prabhat, mother," he said as he put his backpack down by his chair and sat down to his breakfast. He didn't speak Hindi often, but he always made sure to say his greetings to family in their native tongue.

"Good morning to you as well, Baljeet," she replied cheerfully. "Are you ready for another wondrous day at school?"

"I certainly will be after such a wonderful breakfast. What kind are they today?"

"Why not taste one and see for yourself?"

Shrugging, Baljeet tore at the top paratha and ate. His spirits leapt as the familiar flavor of spiced potato filled his mouth.

"Aloo paratha! Mother, you know this is my favorite!"

"A four-point-zero student needs his proper nutrition, does he not? Now eat hearty, son. The school bus will arrive soon."

Needing no further prompting, Baljeet attacked his breakfast with great fervor. No matter how the day turned out now, at least there was one place he had where he could know a small form of true happiness.

* * *

Lunchtime was break time for everyone who gathered in the cafeteria except, of course, Baljeet. He had his geometry book open next to his tray and was reading it intently as he picked at his lunch. Truth be told, this was now the third time he'd re-read the book that year, but he was not about to chance losing any of the information due to laziness. He was so embroiled in his review of the book he barely registered the pair of trays that had just set down opposite him at the table.

"Much as I love mathematics, I can't say as I've ever found a geometry textbook to be all that compelling to read," Ferb said, announcing his presence to his Indian friend.

"Of course it would be exceedingly uncharacteristic of the most brilliant student in school to not be perusing the pages of some academic tome at all times," added Gretchen with a giggle.

"Hello Ferb, hello Gretchen," Baljeet responded in monotone and without looking away from the book. "I just want to finish this one page and then I will be with you."

The pair knew better than to try to convince Baljeet to abandon his typical routine and instead dug into their lunches as he finished reading. For his part, Baljeet had actually finished the page he was on as they'd arrived. He simply wanted a bit more time to steel himself for interacting with one set of his of romantically-involved friends. Ferb and Gretchen had been increasingly friendly with each other over the past few years. Their transition to high school had seen them decide to finally cement their relationship as boyfriend and girlfriend. They had been quite happily dating ever since. While he certainly bore them no ill will, their relationship was nonetheless one of two that made Baljeet resent his staunchly single status. He counted his blessings that they were the first couple to the lunch table that day and not the other one.

"Where are Phineas and Isabella," he asked as he closed his textbook. "They usually beat you guys to lunch."

Ferb and Gretchen traded a quick glance before responding.

"They had to go see Mrs. Birmingham about their roles for the school play," Ferb said, hoping it was a feasible enough excuse on his brother's behalf.

Baljeet cocked an eyebrow at the notion since he knew for a fact Phineas and Isabella had only minor parts in the production. He looked back down at his food as the truth of the situation dawned on him.

"Oh, of course," he replied.

"Yes," Ferb replied.

"Ferb, could you do me a favor in the future?"

"I can certainly try."

"Just tell me next time that they are too busy kissing in the hall to come to lunch on time."

Ferb blushed in embarrassment for being called on his small lie. "Ah. Heh. Sorry, Baljeet."

"You do not need to worry about covering up for them for my sake, Ferb. I have grown accustomed to being the only single one in the group."

"You could always try to rectify that situation yourself," Gretchen reminded him.

Baljeet narrowed his eyes as he looked at her in disbelief. "Name me one girl in this school who would be caught dead alone on a date with someone like me."

"We're not so popular that we know everyone in school, Baljeet," Ferb reminded him. "So it would be impossible for either of us to know for certain about any girls who might take a shine to you."

Gretchen nodded in agreement with her boyfriend. "Ferb's right. Besides, girls do still like guys who take initiative. I can vouch for that personally."

Baljeet sighed as he packed up his book and stood up from the table. "I appreciate your attempts to encourage me, but the facts do not lie. I am one of the biggest nerds in this school. I do not have the redeeming social graces that people like Phineas or either of you possess. I do not value or hold interest in the same things normal American teenagers do. I may not be unlikable, but I am most certainly un-dateable."

"I'm not sure 'un-dateable' is even a word, Baljeet," Gretchen noted, trying to make light of things somehow. Baljeet merely shook his head at her, picked up his tray, and left the couple at the table to await their other friends. Ferb put his hand on hers as he sensed her disappointment.

"Much as I hate to admit it, this isn't a problem we can solve for him," he told her. "Baljeet is his own worst enemy here."

"Still, maybe I'll ask around a bit with Isabella," Gretchen said. "There's got to be someone around who might take a liking to him."

Ferb smiled at her. "Never one to give up, are you?"

"I'm still a Fireside Girl at heart, even if I've long since retired my sash," She replied with a smile.

Baljeet headed for his locker after dropping off his tray, doing his best to ignore all the various couples that dotted the cafeteria and lined the halls. He reached his locker, spun the combination lock on it through its sequence, and opened it to switch his books out. What he discovered inside was completely mystifying.

Atop his perfectly stacked books sat a sandwich bag full of cookies with a note underneath written on lavender-colored stationery. He slid the note out from underneath the cookies and opened it. The writing was unmistakably feminine.

"No matter what," he said, reading the letter quietly to himself, "know that I will always take care of you. Please enjoy the cookies, I made them myself. I will try to have something new for you later this week. Love…"

Baljeet couldn't make out the signature as it looked to be in either Chinese or Japanese; neither of which he understood. He cautiously took the cookies out of his locker, opened the bag and sniffed them. They certainly smelled like delicious, homemade cookies. He took one out and bit into it.

"Wow, these are fantastic," he said to himself. "Well, whoever you are, thank you for the cookies. They are quite delicious and definitely making this day a little better for me."

Baljeet closed his locker and continued to enjoy the cookies as he headed for his study hall. A female figure peered out from behind the row of lockers and watched him leave. She smiled and found herself blushing. Her attempt at improving his day had been a success. She quickly headed back in the opposite direction and began thinking about what her next anonymous gesture would be.

* * *

Something felt off. Buford couldn't put his finger on it, but something was out of sorts. No matter how hard he hit the tackling dummy during football practice, he couldn't shake that feeling one bit. After hitting the showers and saying his goodbyes to the team for the day, he decided to simply get his mind off of the matter by paying a bully-style visit to his longtime nerd.

Ironically, it was only upon said visit that he found out what it was that was off. Baljeet was, for the first time in recent memory, actually smiling when he found him waiting to be picked up by his mother after school.

"What's got you in such a good mood, nerd," he asked brusquely.

"Oh, hello Buford," Baljeet replied in his typical pleasant demeanor. "Nothing special, things have just been not quite so bleak for me over the past few days."

Buford growled a bit. "I'm not buyin' it, so you better come clean unless you wanna enjoy the view from the flagpole again."

"I have no reason to lie to you, Buford," Baljeet said with a mildly frustrated sigh. "If you are so intent on tormenting me as always then please do so quickly."

Now Buford was certain something was going on that Baljeet was keeping from him. What's more, whatever it was had given Baljeet a level of happiness that eclipsed the threat of pain from bullying. There were a limited number of things that could do that, so Buford grasped for what was probably the least likely reason.

"You'd better not have actually gotten a girlfriend," Buford commented, folding his arms.

"You know I do not," Baljeet replied. "At least, not yet."

"Huh?"

"I did not stutter, did I?"

"'Jeet, we've been over this before. Ain't no way any girl in this school's gonna date you willingly."

Baljeet shrugged at him. "I am not so certain of that anymore."

"And why's that?"

"It is just a feeling I have," Baljeet said, darting his eyes away from Buford as he spoke. Buford had known Baljeet long enough to know when he did that he was either lying or at least withholding information.

"You're a nerd," Buford said, looming over his target. "Nerds don't get feelings about stuff like this."

"Buford, I have said this to you before but I will say it again," Baljeet said as he stood up. "I have a life outside of you. Whether you choose to believe that or not is your issue. If you would like to discuss this again sometime without threatening me, perhaps I will be more willing to tell you the reason for this feeling I have about this matter; however, my mother has arrived and it is time for me to go home."

Buford watched in disbelief as Baljeet got into his mother's car without further word and headed home. He gritted his teeth watching his nerd drive off home. For once, he realized that brute force wasn't going to get him his answers. A call to Phineas was in order.

As he rode off in the back of his mother's car, Baljeet fished the latest note from his mystery admirer from his pants pocket. This was now the third time he'd gotten such a note along with baked treats of some sort. He was still hesitant to let himself get used to it, but it was nonetheless uplifting in a way he had never experienced before. He only wished he knew who the admirer actually was.

* * *

Something was up, that much was clear to everyone at this point. At first, Phineas had dismissed the concerned phone call from Buford about Baljeet's apparent change in attitude as a one-time anomaly. That was now clearly not the case. For the past week, Baljeet seemed to actually be bordering on being cheerful. Any attempts to get the truth out of him as to what was going on had fallen flat. Here, again, was lunchtime and as Phineas and Isabella approached the table they saw Baljeet practically hiding behind his history textbook, which was propped up on the table. Isabella quickly whispered to Phineas, who nodded his approval to her plan and quickly moved to address his longtime friend.

"Heya Baljeet," he said, setting his lunch tray down. "How's the history re-read going?"

"Not bad," Baljeet replied without looking up from the book. "I am up to the Civil War. It is always quite an interesting read."

"Hmm…I don't remember any lavender-colored paper in our history book talking about the Civil War," Isabella added, peeking over Baljeet's shoulder into his book.

Suddenly panicking, Baljeet slammed the book shut and put it down in front of him with his hands atop it protectively.

"'Jeet, we're just curious," Phineas told him calmly. "You've been acting, well, happy. Don't get me wrong, it's a great change for you, but we just want to know why."

"We're all friends here, Baljeet," Isabella added, sitting next to him for the moment. "Won't you please share your secret with us?"

"Just…please do not tell Buford," Baljeet said slowly. "I do not want this getting ruined."

Phineas smiled at the concerned Indian boy and nodded at him. "If Buford finds out it'll be from you, man. Not us. I promise."

Baljeet nodded in consent and re-opened his book to reveal the latest letter he'd found in his locker. Isabella picked it up and looked it over carefully.

"Wow," she said, rather impressed. "No doubt about it, Baljeet, this is definitely from a girl; one who's apparently crazy about you."

"I have no idea who, though," Baljeet told her. "She signs her name on every note, but I cannot read it. It is in either Chinese or Japanese, I think."

"She mentions treats in the note. What treats?"

Baljeet fished the latest baked gift he'd received from his backpack. This time it was a plastic container that, when opened, revealed a pair of chocolate-frosted cupcakes inside with a cherry atop each one.

"Those look tasty," Phineas noted. "They look kinda familiar, though."

"They should," Isabella told him. "Those are Fireside Girl cupcakes."

"Great," Baljeet said disappointedly. "So my admirer was lying about making everything herself."

"No, I doubt that," Isabella said, picking up one of the cupcakes. "It's true the bulk of the cupcakes the girls sell are made at the factory, but to qualify to sell them you first have to prove that you can make them yourself. These cupcakes don't look as perfect as the factory ones, so they have to be homemade."

"So 'Jeet's admirer is a Fireside Girl, then," Phineas said conclusively.

"Well, former Fireside Girl," Isabella added, correcting him. "Where and when do you get the letters and goods, Baljeet?"

"That is the slightly disconcerting part of all of this," Baljeet admitted. "They are always in my locker waiting for me. I have a combination lock on the door and I have never told anyone the combination."

"So it's a former Fireside Girl with considerable baking skills, of Chinese or Japanese descent, and who has their 'Safecracker' patch," Isabella said, compiling all the clues. She considered the information briefly and then nodded to herself. "I think I know who it may be, Baljeet."

"Really," Baljeet replied hopefully. "Who is it, then?"

"I want to confirm it myself first, though. Can you give me a day or so?"

Baljeet frowned momentarily, but nodded in consent. "I suppose I can wait a little longer."

"Trust me, you have nothing to worry about," Isabella told him reassuringly. "I'll go with Gretchen and see what the deal is. Who knows? Maybe we can talk her into coming out of her shell."

Baljeet nodded again, but remained silent for the remainder of the lunch hour once Ferb and Gretchen arrived at the table. He ate his lunch and enjoyed his cupcakes, hoping that someday soon he'd be able to thank the creator of such delicious treats in person, and perhaps even spend some time with them.


	2. Chapter 2

"You're sure she's the one," Gretchen asked Isabella as they made their way up to the front door of the house. "If we're wrong this is gonna be pretty embarrassing."

"If we're wrong then I seriously have no clue who it could be," Isabella told her. "But so far as I can tell this is where the evidence points."

"Only one way to find out," Gretchen replied as she rang the doorbell. It was answered moments later by an attractive, stylishly dressed, middle-aged Japanese woman.

"Isabella Garcia-Shapiro, is that you," she asked in amusement. "My, I haven't seen you since I removed your tonsils. You've become quite the pretty young woman."

"Thanks, Dr. Hirano," Isabella replied politely. "It's nice to see you again as well. I don't think you ever met my friend Gretchen, though."

"Nice to meet you, doctor," Gretchen added.

"Likewise," Dr. Hirano replied. "Is there something I can do for you?"

Isabella nodded to her. "We were wondering if Ginger was around…"

"Certainly, one moment. Please come in while I get her."

Dr. Hirano wandered over to the hallway and called out to her youngest daughter in Japanese, which they heard Ginger respond to in kind. Ginger appeared from the hallway moments later and, upon seeing Isabella and Gretchen, briefly had a panicked look on her face before she composed herself and walked over towards them.

"Hey guys, long time no see," she said, putting as convincing a smile on her face as she could. "You wanna come back to my room to hang out?"

"Ginger, your homework," Dr. Hirano asked, checking on her daughter's progress.

"It's finished, okaa-san. I was just doing some reading before you called me."

Dr. Hirano smiled back at her. "You're so much better about that than your sister. By all means, then, go back and relax with your friends."

Ginger nodded to her mother and led the girls back to her room, closing the door behind them as soon as they were all inside.

"Wow, this is one orderly room," Gretchen said, marveling at how tidy it looked. "And I thought I was a neat freak. No offense, Ginger."

"None taken," Ginger replied.

"I should definitely take some tips from you as well," Isabella added, also impressed by the layout of the room. "I mean you're really-"

"I know why you guys are here," Ginger said, stopping Isabella mid-sentence. "And before you even ask...yes, it's me. I'm the one leaving notes and treats for Baljeet."

Isabella and Gretchen traded looks for a moment before looking back at Ginger, who was looking suddenly very vulnerable and afraid.

"Please don't get the wrong idea, Ginger," Isabella told her quickly. "We're not here to confront you or anything. We just wanted to confirm it is all; and to help however we can."

"Isabella's right," Gretchen added. "If anything, we're here to support you."

"Really," Ginger asked, sounding hopeful now. Isabella and Gretchen both nodded enthusiastically at her, to which she sighed in relief. "Yokatta…I was worried you'd react like the other girls used to."

"Is that why you're doing all this in secret," Isabella asked.

Ginger nodded in response. "Partly. It was pretty hard back then with what seemed like everyone treating me like I was crazy for liking Baljeet. Really it's nobody else's business who I like, but I couldn't handle all that peer pressure so I just started keeping it to myself. I also didn't want to cause Baljeet trouble either, especially since he has no idea that I like him."

"I have to admit, I didn't even know you liked him," Isabella told her. "It's kinda embarrassing since I was our troop leader for so long."

"You spent so much of that time in Phineas-land I'm not surprised," Gretchen said jokingly. "Heck, Adyson and I practically ran the troop for you on a number of occasions when you were really out of it."

"Ehehe, sorry about that, Gretchen," Isabella said, blushing from embarrassment.

"It wasn't a thing," Gretchen told her, smiling. "Getting back on track, though, I never really cared about who you liked or why, Ginger. That was all Milly, Katie, and Holly."

"Thank you both," Ginger said, starting to feel more relaxed again. "Hearing you guys support me means almost as much to me as seeing Baljeet actually happy."

"So what prompted you to start the whole secret admirer shtick," Isabella asked.

"I've been kinda watching him since we all entered Danville High this year," Ginger said, sitting on her bed as she started her story. "Originally I wanted to sit with him for lunch, but we ended up with opposite schedules. While he's at lunch, I'm in study hall, so that pretty much ruined that plan."

"If you're supposed to be in study hall, how are you watching him," Gretchen asked.

Ginger smirked at her and pointed to her Fireside Girls sash, which hung from one post of her four-post bed. "I didn't get that 'Ninja Stealth' patch for nothing, you know. I sneak out to keep an eye on him from the ventilation ducts."

"I wondered why our section of the cafeteria wasn't getting enough cool air," Isabella noted.

Ginger laughed sheepishly, but continued. "I was content at first to just keep an eye on him, but then it happened."

"What happened," Gretchen asked.

"You and Ferb," Ginger told her directly. "Phineas and Isabella hooking up was one thing. We all knew it was coming."

"I didn't…" Isabella said innocently, earning her derisive looks from both of the other girls.

"When you and Ferb started officially dating, Gretchen, I saw how hard it was on Baljeet," Ginger continued. "You guys may not have thought anything of it, but it made him feel like he was on the outside looking in. And no amount of telling him otherwise was going to change that. That Buford still continues to bully him too just made things even worse. A few weeks ago I saw him have this horrible day one day and…I couldn't take it anymore. I had to let him know someone out there cared. So I broke out my Fireside Girls cookbook, made some cookies, wrote him a note, and broke into his locker while he was at lunch one day.

"Seeing the smile my cookies and note brought to him…it convinced me that I was doing something right. At the same time, though, I knew eventually you guys would figure it out. I guess I just didn't expect it to happen so soon."

"Well, Baljeet's change in attitude has been pretty drastic; not to mention quick," Isabella said, now leaning against one of the posts of Ginger's bed. "But what I don't get is why the secrecy? Why not just give him the stuff in person and tell him how you feel?"

"Weren't you listening to me before, Isabella," Ginger asked, looking up at her. "You and Gretchen have it easy, you're not only popular in your own right, you're dating popular guys; heck, the most popular guys in school. Half of our troop thought I was crazy for liking Baljeet. I could barely stomach dealing with them getting on my case for it, never mind how many people at school would bother me over it. I just know that if Baljeet saw that happen to someone because of him it'd just make him feel even more horrible. But that's not the only thing that's been stopping me. The other is…well…"

"Buford," Isabella said on her behalf.

Ginger nodded. "I worry that if Buford saw me being nice to him he'd just do even more terrible things to him, and then it'd be my fault that Baljeet was suffering. I don't think I could bear that. I…I don't know what else to do. I want him to be happy. I want to be happy with him. I guess I'm just too much of a coward to do anything about it…"

Ginger broke down sobbing into her hands, prompting Isabella to sit down by her and put her arms around her. Gretchen followed suit as well, trying to soothe their friend and comrade.

"Ginger, you're no coward," Isabella told her. "You're doing something amazing for someone you care a lot about to try and help him through a rough spot in his life. If you were a coward, you wouldn't have done anything at all and I know you would never abandon someone like that."

"Isabella's right," Gretchen added. "No matter what the others in the troop may have said, you stuck to what you felt and never gave up on liking Baljeet. Remember the first rule of the Fireside Girls?"

"That we don't talk about the Fireside Girls," Ginger asked in a confused tone between sniffles.

"The first real rule," Gretchen said, rolling her eyes at the old in-joke. She made a mental note to smack Adyson someday for coming up with that joke so long ago.

"Never give up…" Ginger said, starting to calm down. "…never surrender."

"That's the essence of who we were and who we still are," Isabella told her, taking her hands into her own. "And doing what you have been for Baljeet proves that you've always had the spirit of a true Fireside Girl. So when I say you're no coward, Ginger, it's because I know you aren't one. I wouldn't have let you stay with the troop if you were."

"Isabella…Gretchen…thank you," Ginger said, putting her arms around both of them and hugging them as tightly as she could manage. The two girls hugged her as well, then hopped back off the bed as Ginger dried her eyes and recomposed herself.

"You're both right," she said, regaining some confidence. "I won't give up on Baljeet. I just don't know what to do to take things to the next step."

"The way I see it, there are two problems that need addressing," Gretchen said, now thinking hard on the matter. "Problem one is Baljeet's image."

Ginger frowned at the thought. "But I like his image. He's just so cute in those khakis…"

"I mean his being a massive nerd," Gretchen said, correcting her. "No offense, Ginger, but he's not only a card-carrying nerd, he's quite proud of it."

"We need to change peoples' perception of him somehow," Isabella concluded. "If Baljeet were at least somewhat liked among the student body, you could approach him without worrying about what anyone thought about it."

"Problem two is, of course, Buford," Gretchen added. "I'm not sure what's up with him these days. He and Baljeet always seemed to almost get along like friends, at least from my perspective."

"I think that's what we all thought," Isabella said dejectedly. "It's entirely possible that Baljeet feels quite differently about how Buford treats him than we do. It's also possible there's something going on with Buford that he's not telling anyone about and that's making him escalate his tactics against Baljeet to compensate."

"I don't suppose there's any chance he could be talked to about whatever's bothering him," Ginger asked despondently.

"There's only one person who knows Buford better than anyone else, and that's Baljeet," Isabella told her. "I don't know how likely it is we could convince Baljeet to try talking to him though. He doesn't seem to listen to any of our advice or encouragement anymore."

"There is one person he seems to be listening to, though," Gretchen added, putting a hand on Ginger's shoulder.

Ginger immediately picked up on what Gretchen was suggesting and recoiled in horror at the thought.

"I can't ask him to do that," she said vehemently. "I might as well be writing his death sentence!"

"Try looking at it this way, Ginger," Gretchen told her. "Buford basically came to us for help with Baljeet. He's the one who called Phineas after all. That tells me he doesn't want this to get out of control, which it might if he tries to do things his way. I don't think Buford's as bad a person as you seem to think he is."

Isabella smiled as she quietly remembered a certain Christmas Eve several years ago where Buford had proven just what Gretchen was talking about. "I agree with Gretchen, Ginger. There's only one person that can get Buford off of Baljeet's case, and that's Baljeet."

"I'll…think about it," Ginger said hesitantly. "But that still won't solve the first issue.

"Right. We still have to improve Baljeet's image with the student body," Isabella said, recalling the matter.

All three girls fell quiet as they all tried to think of an answer. As she paced Ginger's room, Isabella happened to look back at Gretchen. A thought suddenly struck the two girls simultaneously.

"Phineas and Ferb," they both said.

"If anyone could come up with a way to improve Baljeet's popularity, it's them," Isabella added. "And I know they'll be down for it."

Ginger suddenly felt hopeful as she recalled all the amazing feats the brothers had accomplished together. "Well…if they're okay with trying…"

"They won't try," Gretchen told her, still smiling. "They'll succeed."

"What should I do in the meantime," Ginger asked.

"Keep supporting your man, girl," Isabella told her. "We'll keep your secret. At least, as long as you want us to."

Ginger nodded at her. "Thank you both so very much. You're both true friends."

"No we're not," Gretchen told her, stepping up to her again. "Fireside Girls aren't friends; we're sisters."

Ginger quickly hugged Gretchen again, and then Isabella moments later. They may not be members of Troop 46231 anymore, but the bonds between them had persisted nonetheless. If anything, they were now stronger than they had ever been.


	3. Chapter 3

"So let me get this straight," Phineas said quietly to Isabella as they rode the bus to school the following day. "You want me and Ferb to find a way to make Baljeet, the biggest nerd in the entire school, popular?"

"In a nutshell," Isabella told him with a nod. "I figured if anyone could pull it off it's you guys. What do you think?"

Phineas grinned widely at her. "I think I've definitely finally rubbed off on you. This is a big idea on par with anything Ferb and I have ever cooked up. And I think it's an awesome one, too. I'm definitely down, and I'm sure Ferb will be too."

"I knew I could count on you guys. This means a lot to me, Phineas. And even more to Ginger."

"She's really crazy about 'Jeet, then?"

Isabella nodded emphatically. "Head over heels. Admittedly I'm not sure how real the things she's afraid of are, but I'm hardly in the same situation as her. If doing this is what it'll take to get their relationship going then it's what I want to do."

"Baljeet deserves some happiness, and we're gonna do our best to give him a shot at it. And since we're on the topic of happiness I was wondering if you were available Friday after school?"

Isabella blushed lightly as she smiled slyly at Phineas. "Like you even have to ask anymore."

Phineas smiled back at her similarly. "I was once told that girls like being asked on dates, though."

"Must've been someone smart who told you that."

"Lista y bonita," Phineas said in his best imitation of a Mexican accent.

Phineas suddenly found himself grabbed and kissed passionately by Isabella. In the short time they'd been boyfriend and girlfriend, he'd found out that talking romantically to her in Spanish set her off like nothing else. He wasn't sure why, but this was one thing he wasn't particularly worried about figuring out; especially since he quite enjoyed the reaction it got out of her. After a few moments, Isabella stopped kissing him and merely held herself close to him, an utterly contented look in her eyes.

"I'm just gonna stay here for a while," she said, cuddling up to him as best she could.

"You do that," Phineas replied as he stroked her hair gently. "I'm just gonna start trying to figure out how we're gonna accomplish our goal."

Isabella practically purred as she had her hair stroked for the rest of the ride to school. The only stray thought that occurred to her was wondering if Gretchen had encountered any problems running the idea by Ferb.

* * *

"So let me get this straight," Ferb said quietly to Gretchen as they sat in homeroom. They were both habitually early to school and were the only students in the room at the moment. "Your idea is to have Phineas and I find a way to make Baljeet popular so that Ginger and he can start dating without fear of mockery from the student body."

"That's the essence of our plan," Gretchen replied, sitting backwards in a chair just in front of Ferb. "What do you think?"

"It's a tall order to be sure, and I'd say you were a loony if you hadn't spent so many summers watching Phineas and I do the impossible," he said with a smirk. "Actually, it shouldn't be difficult for us to pull off at all."

Gretchen beamed a smile at him. "I knew you'd come through for us. Ginger will be incredibly grateful, as am I."

"Grateful enough to perhaps accompany me to a movie Friday night" Ferb asked suavely.

"I'd like nothing more," she replied, blushing heavily now. Even after dating consistently for almost two months, she still wasn't used to the amount of romantic attention Ferb gave her.

Ferb quickly stood up and took her into his arms. She practically burrowed her head into his chest as she squeezed him as tightly as she could. She looked up at him moments later, smiling brightly. Ferb smiled back at her and, after a quick look to the door of the room, leaned down and gave her a chaste but affectionate kiss on the lips that lasted until they heard the telltale sound of their homeroom teacher's shoes as he was nearing the room. They quickly broke it off, sat back down, and tried to hide their somewhat flushed faces from the teacher as he entered.

"So how're you going to pull it off," Gretchen asked quietly.

"Phineas is the idea man," Ferb replied with a shrug. "I'm much more of a builder. I'll have to confer with him sometime today."

"Should we involve Baljeet in the planning?"

"I think we have to, otherwise he'll never agree to whatever we decide to do."

"Just please don't tell him about Ginger. She wants to reveal herself to him on her terms and her time."

"Trust me, Gretchen; I won't be the one to tell him about her."

Satisfied that Ferb was on board for the plan, Gretchen changed topics to more normal things for the two of them for the time being. Though inwardly, she couldn't wait for lunchtime that day to find out what form the brothers' plan for Baljeet would take.

* * *

Baljeet stopped for just a moment as the football field came into view. One of the perks of being a star student at Danville High was it afforded him freedom to do as he pleased during his lunch and study hall time. This, however, was not how he'd intended to use that time that day. As much as every fiber in his being told him it was a mistake to come here while part of the football team was training and having their lunch, one small voice urged him onward. He looked down at the lavender-colored piece of paper he clutched in his hand and read over the important section one more time.

"I know you're looking for me," it said, "but I'm not ready to be found yet. Please give me some more time. You need to talk to Buford, though. Something is wrong with him and I think you're the only person who can figure it out. I know it'll be scary, but I believe in you. If anyone can talk him down peacefully, it's the person who's been with him the longest."

"Reason has never been Buford's strong suit," Baljeet said out loud, as if he were responding to the writer of the letter. "But she is right. Something has got to give."

Baljeet resumed his approach to the field, eventually taking a seat in the bleachers as he waited for Buford to leave the field. After watching ten minutes' worth of team exercising, he saw Buford notice him in the stands and head in his direction after checking in with his coach. He climbed the stands and stood next to Baljeet looking down at the field while he wiped the sweat from his forehead with a towel.

"You got a lotta guts comin' out here," Buford said, gulping some water from a bottle he'd brought with him.

"Someone had to be the one to start this conversation," Baljeet replied. "I think we both know you are not the talkative type."

"Ain't that the truth."

"So…I do seem to have a secret admirer."

"Who is she?"

Baljeet shook his head at the overly simple and direct question. "If I knew, she would not be a secret admirer, would she?"

Buford shrugged. "Guess not. Any ideas?"

"None. Isabella and Gretchen were going to check it out for me, but I have not seen them to talk to yet today."

"Whatcha gonna do when you find out," Buford asked, now looking over at the Indian boy.

"I think that question is better posed to you," Baljeet said, looking back up at him. "You are the one so insistent that I cannot be so liked by anyone."

Buford grunted in response. It was as close to a sigh as he could manage. "Lemme ask you somethin' else first."

"Ask away."

"If you hook up with this girl, what happens to us?"

"What do you mean by that?"

"You just gonna ditch me so you can join the dating scene? Like Phineas and Ferb did?"

"Buford…what kind of nonsense are you talking about? Nobody has ditched you, as you say."

Buford took a couple steps towards Baljeet and loomed over him, anger creeping into his expression. "Then how come I don't see 'em around hardly anymore? How come we don't all do stuff together like we always used to? How come I'm the one left all alone?"

"_Excuse me_," Baljeet shot back, standing up as he was now also getting angry. "**You** feel left all alone? How do you think I feel? They do not do things with me as much anymore either. They are living their own lives how they choose! I am now trying to do the same but I cannot because you do not seem willing to let me! So what gives?"

"I just don't wanna get left all alone again," Buford said, yelling at Baljeet at the top of his lungs at him.

With that one emotional outburst, Baljeet suddenly understood what was going on. He took a deep breath to calm himself as Buford continued to huff and puff in front of him.

"This is not about me, is it," Baljeet asked, now calm again. "This is about your father."

"I hate his guts," Buford said, averting his eyes from Baljeet now. "You know that."

Baljeet nodded to him. "All too well. I remember when you told me about how he left your mother."

"Jerk wins the Tri-State Lottery and instead of sharin' it with me and mom he just up and leaves without so much as a goodbye. I was just a little kid back then, but I still remember it. I remember how much it hurt mom…and how much it hurt me."

"It was not long after that my family moved to America, remember? I found you alone at that playground on the teeter totter. I remember feeling sorry that no one was playing with you."

"I was just another fat kid back then. Other kids don't like playin' with the fat kids."

"I certainly did not mind. We had a lot of fun before you became a bully."

"We had a lot of fun after too, didn't we?"

Baljeet let a small laugh escape, thinking about Buford's definition of "fun". "Yes, I suppose we did."

"But all that's gonna change once you get a girlfriend, man. You ain't gonna have time for just messin' around anymore. And I'm gonna be back to just bein' that fat kid sittin' alone on the playground."

"That is simply part of life, Buford. You do not have that kind of time anymore either what with being on the football team. Different things have become important to all of us. We will not always have time every day, or even every week, to just hang out together or do crazy stunts or adventures together like when we were kids. But understand this."

Buford looked at Baljeet again as the Indian teen put a hand on his shoulder.

"None of that changes what we are to each other," Baljeet told him. "I have been, and always shall be, your friend. I will never abandon you, and neither will any of the others. We have all done too much together to be anything less than friends."

"Thanks, 'Jeet," Buford said, cracking a small smile. "I'm usually not sentimental, but…it means a lot to hear that, especially from you. I mean it."

Baljeet smiled back at him. "It was my pleasure."

"You, uh, won't mind if we don't mention this talk to anyone else, right?"

"It is off the record, of course," Baljeet told him with a nod.

"And I may still have to rib ya a bit now and again. Y'know…for old timesake."

"I could do without the wedgies, though."

"Aww, but they're my specialty!"

"Buford…"

"Oh alright. Only on holidays, then."

Baljeet sighed. "I guess that will do. So are we okay again, old buddy?"

Buford put a meaty arm around Baljeet's shoulders and hugged him from the side. "Never better, little buddy. Still pretty ironic, though, what with both of us endin' up feelin' the same way just because Phineas and Ferb got all hooked up."

"I think it just goes to show we are far more alike than we realize," Baljeet noted.

Buford let go of him and looked at him scornfully. "Don't push your luck."

"Sorry," Baljeet said sheepishly.

"So, what're we gonna do about this chick who's got the hots for you?"

"You are okay with it?"

"So long as she's a decent girl. She's gotta get my approval before she starts datin' you. After all, I can't let you go runnin' around with just any floozy."

Baljeet looked questioningly up at Buford, who he could tell was having a hard time keeping a straight face. Moments later, the two broke into raucous laughter at the comment. It served to heal whatever rift remained between them. Buford had his "nerd" and Baljeet had his "bully". There were never two better, or stranger, friends in the history of Danville High.

* * *

Luck was on Phineas and Ferb's side that day as they sat to lunch with the girls. With Baljeet off seeking out Buford, it afforded them time to talk openly about the entire situation. Gretchen and Isabella joined the huddle as they began their brainstorming session.

"The way I see it," Phineas started, "what we need to do is get people to like Baljeet for who and what he is rather than try to change him at all. If we want him to have any kind of lasting popularity, he needs acceptance; not a makeover."

"Agreed," Ferb added. "However that does complicate matters significantly. Danville High's student body isn't known for its tolerance of the nerdy. You and I have it easy because many of the things we've accomplished, while scientifically complicated, have been easily accessible by the public."

"We could simply explain to people that many of our creations couldn't have happened without Baljeet's help," Phineas said. "Remember the Anti-Gravity Fun Launcher? That wouldn't have happened without his crazy math skills."

"I don't think that'll be enough," Ferb replied, shaking his head. "Lots of people have been contributors to our projects in the past, but ultimately we're the ones who end up with all the credit; whether we want it or not. Whatever we do has to be something that Baljeet can call his own achievement."

Gretchen was about to add her own thoughts when the TV screens in the cafeteria came to life with a cacophony of wacky sounds and poor visual effects. She rolled her eyes in disgust.

"Oh great, it's that time again," she complained. "Remind me again why we pushed Irving to get involved with the AV club, again?"

"Because this way he's at least not stalking us during lunch and study hall hours," Isabella reminded her. "At least they only give him a few minutes during lunch to do his thing. Not that it's all that interesting or entertaining."

"He means no harm," Ferb said, giving Irving a half-hearted defense. "He just doesn't know where to draw the line is all. Besides, he also has contributed to our efforts in the past. Right, Phineas?"

Phineas, however, was glued to the TV as he watched Irving go through his usual routine about science fiction, actual science, and whatever else he wanted to go on about. He then looked over and saw Baljeet entering the cafeteria. He looked back to the TV again, a familiar smile spreading across his face.

"Ferb, I know what we're going to do for Baljeet," he pronounced. "But we'll need to make a phone call first. And we'll need to talk to Irving. He's going to be a part of this as well."

"A part of what, if I may ask," Ferb asked, completely mystified as to what Phineas had come up with. Phineas quickly huddled the other three at the table and went over the idea while they waited for Baljeet to join them.

* * *

"A science-based entertainment show," Baljeet repeated skeptically. Phineas had just pitched the idea to him while Ferb was off talking to someone on his cell phone. "And why on earth would you want me involved in it?"

"Because your scientific knowledge is second to none in school, 'Jeet," Phineas told him. "Heck, you understand things Ferb and I still struggle with."

"But I am hardly cut out to be a TV personality. You and Ferb would make for much better hosts."

"Ferb wants to take this opportunity to try directing instead. As for me, I'm gonna work on the musical score. Isabella and Gretchen will work the cameras."

Baljeet sighed in frustration. "You are not going to give me any choice in the matter, are you? Can you not at least get someone else to help me out?"

"You'll have help, don't worry about that. So are you in?"

"I guess, but is there not already a show on cable TV like this? Copyright infringement is not on my list of things I want to do before I graduate from high school."

"Ferb's already taking care of that. He knows a couple guys."

Just then, Ferb returned to the table, pocketing his cell phone as he sat. "So long as we're not selling the recordings, they're all for it. Oh, and they said to tell you that Grant says 'hi', Phineas."

Phineas smiled brightly as it seemed everything was coming together. "Excellent. Now all that's left is to get your two helpers."

"So who did you have in mind," Baljeet asked, having accepted his role in the production.

"Well since we need his timeslot to air the segment we were going to ask Irving," Phineas told him. "He's also pretty good at scientific things as well. I'm sure if we ask him to do it as a favor to us he'll be on board faster than you can blink."

"Great," Baljeet commented sarcastically. "Two nerds on TV. What could be more entertaining than that? I do hope you have got someone else in mind to be there with us so people are not just watching us nerd up the cafeteria every day."

Baljeet got up to bus his tray, which afforded Isabella a chance to question Phineas.

"So who's the third person gonna be," she asked. "It can't be any of us; we're all working behind the scenes."

Phineas just smiled as he told her the name of the person he had in mind to be the third host.

"Ginger."

Isabella and Gretchen both practically fell out of their chairs.

"Are you nuts, Phineas," Gretchen asked in a hushed yet shocked tone. "The whole point of this is for Baljeet not to find out until the time is right!"

"We haven't told him yet, have we," Phineas replied, also in a hushed tone. "And we're not going to. All she has to do is be part of the show. Anything else that happens between her and Baljeet as a result of it is on them, not us."

"It's quite brilliant as I think about it," Ferb added. "If they have a chance to work together on something like this, it'll afford them the opportunity to get closer without concern about who's watching. It'll even get Baljeet accustomed to being around her, which will make things all the easier whenever she does reveal her secret to him."

Gretchen pursed her lips, but nodded as she deferred to their judgment. "I'm not sure Ginger will go for it, but we can at least ask."

No sooner did Gretchen speak than a lavender-colored piece of paper floated down from the ventilation ducts above their heads. Phineas snatched the paper out of the air and opened it, reading it aloud to those at the table.

"Count me in. Signed, Ginger. I guess that answers that."

"So all that's left is to go talk to Irving about it," Isabella asked.

Phineas and Ferb slowly looked at each other and shuddered in unison.

"Rock-paper-scissors for it," Ferb said, quickly putting his fist up.

Phineas quickly accepted the challenge and threw down paper. After five consecutive ties, Phineas thre paper which lost to Ferb's scissors. His head met the table with a loud bang.

"I'll come with you if it'll help at all," Isabella offered.

Phineas looked up at her and shook his head. "No, I won't subject you to this. I'll just try to make it as short and sweet as possible."

With Baljeet's return to the table, the group got back to lunch as usual. They all noted, however, that Baljeet seemed to be in even better spirits after his meeting with Buford. As Ferb and Gretchen tried to make conversation with him about it, Phineas finished his lunch quickly and went off to the AV room to confer with Irving. Isabella bid him goodbye, and then noticed that Baljeet had two brownies alongside his lunch tray. She smiled, knowing that a certain someone was indeed sticking to her guns.


	4. Chapter 4

Baljeet was no stranger to the backyard of the Flynn-Fletcher home, but the fact that he was an integral part of the weekend's activity was quite foreign to him. They had finished filming half of the episodes they had planned and were taking a break for lunch, which was being prepared inside by Phineas and Ferb's mother, Linda.

Baljeet still wasn't certain why he'd been chosen to have such a leading role in the show they were producing, but his concern over it was reduced by two things; or rather, two people. The fact that Irving was one of the other hosts of the show did wonders for his worries. However nerdy he felt, he took solace in knowing that standing next to a raving fanboy like Irving made him look downright cool in comparison.

He'd had no idea that the other person Phineas had in mind to help them host was Ginger Hirano, but it was quite a welcome surprise. Baljeet remembered her well as a former Fireside Girl who'd been in the same troop as Isabella and Gretchen. Five years had seen her grow into an incredibly attractive young woman, at least in his eyes. In several ways she looked incredibly similar to her older sister Stacy, what with her dark skin, slender figure, and long, jet black hair. The similarities ended there, however. Stacy was a fashionista supreme with her sense of style. Ginger was far more down-to-earth, favoring sneakers, capris, and t-shirts over the myriad of things her sister wore. She also wore her hair up in a high ponytail as opposed to the hair bows her sister had favored. More than anything else, however, what set the sisters apart were their attitudes. Ginger was far more serious than Stacy in everything she did, evidenced by the attention to detail she'd given all the experiments they'd done so far that day. All in all, it was making Baljeet realize what an attractive girl she was, at least to him.

He'd had crushes on various girls before, but those feelings had either faded with time or never come to fruition. He felt there was something different about Ginger, though. He couldn't place it, but so far working with her that day had felt incredibly easy to him; almost comfortable, in fact. Noticing that they were currently alone sitting under the tree in the backyard, Baljeet decided to take a calculated chance and turned to face her while they relaxed.

"You, uh, really know your stuff when it comes to organizing the experiments," he told her as he tried to come up with a compliment.

"R-really," she asked, actually being rather touched by the comment.

"Yes. I mean, I thought I was diligent when I organize things for my experiments in class, but your system is incredibly more efficient."

"Well it's like I'm fond of saying: organization will set you free. It's…kind of a hobby to me."

Baljeet sighed happily at finding such a kindred spirit. "If only I could get other people to understand that. Having a little order in your life can make everything so simple."

"I know," Ginger said excitedly, letting her enthusiasm take over. "I wouldn't know how to get by if I didn't have all my stuff in order at home or at school."

"Precisely my point," Baljeet replied, also getting energetic about the conversation. "For example, I make a point of choosing what clothes I am going to wear the night before."

"That's all? I plan my outfits a week in advance."

"A week? But how do you account for changes in the weather?"

Ginger smiled proudly at him. "I'm a former Fireside Girl. I come prepared. I keep a compact umbrella, sweater, and a change of shoes and socks in my backpack all the time."

"I wish I could do something like that, but my backpack is usually too full of books, notebooks, and other school supplies to fit anything else inside."

"You're probably not packing it right. Do you have your backpack with you?"

"Of course. I never leave home without it anymore. You never know when a good opportunity to do some math or re-read a textbook will come up after all."

"Go get it and let me check it out."

Eager to see what she could do to help him out, Baljeet quickly fetched his backpack from the garage and brought it back to Ginger at the tree. Ginger unzipped all of the backpack's pockets and surveyed the contents quickly, making mental notes of what was inside and what size everything was. She then set to work by first carefully emptying the bag of all its contents. She arranged everything in front of her into several stacks, putting textbooks and notebooks together while separating out school supplies into groups of similar items. Once everything was sorted properly, she began filling the backpack once again; using smaller pockets and side pockets that Baljeet had previously made no use of at all. Upon completion, she presented the newly organized bag to him again.

"That…that was incredible," Baljeet said in astonishment as he looked through his bag. "I cannot believe I never thought to pack my bag like this before!"

"Most teenagers don't give it any thought," Ginger added, her pride fading as she became a bit downcast. "Of course, organization and preparedness are usually not the main things on the minds of most teenagers either. I've found that out the hard way."

"It is never easy when you think, act, or talk differently from others," Baljeet said, thinking back on his own life experiences. "Believe me; I know that better than most."

Ginger noticed Baljeet produce an envelope from inside one of his textbooks. Inside was every single letter she'd written to him so far. He looked over the letters with a small smile.

"But I have been learning lately that just even though I am different from other teenagers, it does not necessarily mean that I am alone," he told her.

"Are those…love letters," Ginger asked, doing her best to act like she didn't know about them at all.

Baljeet nodded to her as he put the envelope back into his bag. "Love letters, encouragement letters, cheer-up letters…I still do not know who has been leaving them for me, but I do want to meet her soon. There is much I want to tell her."

"Like what?"

"For starters, I want to thank her. She does not know how much her kind words have meant to me. Not to mention the baked goods. They have all been delicious. I want to tell her that as well. But most of all, I want to let her know that she is not alone as well."

Ginger sat down next to him, leaning towards him a bit. "What makes you think she's lonely too?"

"It is just the way she has been speaking to me through these letters…she sounds like someone who, like me, is misunderstood by her peers. Perhaps she simply thinks differently or acts differently from them, I do not know. But I want her to know that she is not alone. She does not have to be alone. I, certainly, would enjoy meeting her and having her company."

"I'm sure she'd appreciate hearing that," Ginger said as she forced herself not to become overwhelmed by her feelings. "But I'll bet she's also kind of scared. You know…you do have that one huge, scary guy hanging over you all the time."

"Buford? He is not that bad, really. We talked earlier in the week and, without divulging things for which I would be pummeled without mercy, we have an understanding between us. Now my only concern is finding out who this mysterious admirer is. I am beginning to think she will never show herself."

"Don't give up," Ginger told him resolutely. She had grabbed his shoulder to make sure she had his attention but quickly relented and sat back down. "I mean, girls are a lot more sensitive about this sort of thing. It's not the sort of thing we can just come out and tell a guy. Give her some more time and it'll be worth the wait. At least, that's what I think she'd say."

Silence hung between them for a few moments before Baljeet stood up, hefting his backpack over his shoulder again.

"Thank you for your encouragement, Ginger," he told her, smiling again. "I will take it to heart. Anyway, we should go see if lunch preparations are complete yet. Oh, and thank you again for helping me with my bag. Could I perhaps ask you for more organizational advice in the future?"

"Anytime," she replied, smiling warmly at him. "I'll be inside in a moment."

Ginger stood by the tree and watched him head inside through the sliding door, and then ducked behind the tree as her emotions caught up to her. It had taken every ounce of restraint she had to not reveal that she was the one behind the letters and treats after hearing how he felt about receiving them. Her heart soared as she finally allowed herself to think that maybe, just maybe, things might work out between them after all. She took some deep breaths, recomposed herself, and as she headed into the house for lunch she resolved to make sure the rest of their recording sessions for the weekend were absolute dynamite.

* * *

Baljeet had never felt so nervous in his entire life. The weekend recordings had all gone exceedingly well, but despite Phineas and Ferb's confidence in the finished product he himself suddenly felt very exposed. It was long past time to put a stop to things, though. It was now Monday, and he sat surrounded by his friends at the lunch table as the cafeteria TV sets crackled to life and all their hard work began broadcasting for all to see.

"Welcome to…NerdSmashers," Ferb's voice announced as a steel-colored NerdSmashers logo exploded onto the screen along with a catchy theme tune. "Where our goal is to take your idea of what science is like and smash it to pieces. The NerdSmashers are…Baljeet Rai…"

Baljeet appeared on the screen saying, "Explosions improve everything, just ask Michael Bay."

"…Irving McAllister…"

Next was Irving who said, "If brute force doesn't work, it means you didn't use enough of it."

"…and Ginger Hirano."

Finally was Ginger, who said, "Well, carbon _is_ a girl's best friend."

"And now, on to today's episodes…"

* * *

"Remember when we were kids and we were told not to mix Pop Rocks and soda," Irving asked the audience. "The urban legend was, and still is, that all that carbonation would make your stomach explode."

"Suddenly I'm glad I never liked either," Ginger commented, making a disgusted face.

"Truth is, people have tested that urban legend over the years and it simply doesn't work that way," Irving told her. "It's just not possible to generate enough pressure via carbonation with those two things to cause that kind of damage to a person."

"However, I strongly suggest not mixing your soda with this particularly popular mint," Baljeet said, holding up a small white piece of candy. "Otherwise you'll get a reaction like this."

Baljeet dropped the candy into an opened two-liter bottle of cola and quickly stepped back from it. Almost immediately, the bottle created a spout of carbonated soda several feet high, which elicited amazed reactions from both Irving and Ginger.

"How the heck did it do that," Ginger wondered aloud, also looking a bit horrified by the reaction.

"Those mints may look solid, but their surface has lots of tiny divots in it," Baljeet explained. "The candy itself reacts with certain ingredients in the soda. Those reactions create bubbles that come up from all of those divots. The result is the rather dramatic spout you just saw, and that was with just one candy."

"So what would happen if you used more than one piece," Irving asked.

Baljeet smiled and handed them both a pair of safety goggles and a lab coat. He led them over to an array of soda bottles where he also put on a lab coat and goggles.

"It would look a little something like this," he told them. He proceeded to manually set off mechanisms attached to each soda bottle that dropped multiple candies into them. As the spouts began to erupt, he rushed to one end and used a lever that changed the angle of the bottles as he moved it back and forth. The soda spouts were much higher than the one from the bottle that only got one piece of candy, and they lasted much longer, shooting across the sky. Once it finished, Baljeet removed his soaked lab coat and goggles and walked back over to his co-hosts.

"As if I needed more reason to never want to drink soda again," Ginger commented.

"Or eat mints," Irving added.

Baljeet and Ginger both stepped away from him, making faces from his breath.

"If you are not going to eat mints at least brush your teeth, Irving," Baljeet told him as he walked off-camera with Ginger.

"Hey, I brush," Irving said indignantly as he stormed off after them. "I just had onion on my burger for lunch…"

* * *

Ginger stood looking at herself in a mirror while holding up pieces of lump charcoal, which confused Irving greatly as he approached her.

"Um…since when is charcoal a fashion accessory," he asked.

"Since never, duh," Ginger told him. "But diamonds are expensive so I was thinking about having some made for me. I'm trying to decide which one of these pieces will make the better diamond."

"You do understand that it takes thousands of pounds of pressure over hundreds of years of time to turn carbon into a diamond, right," Baljeet told her.

"Yeah, it can't exactly happen overnight," Irving added.

"Not true," Ginger told them, turning to face them with a smirk. "Scientists can now actually make diamonds with high explosives. The force from the explosion creates more than enough pressure to convert plain ol' carbon into diamonds."

"That must take an awful lot of explosives," Baljeet noted.

"Yeah, it's not exactly the sort of thing you could do in your backyard," Ginger replied. "Since the explosion would, y'know, destroy your backyard."

The scene shifted to archived footage of a diamond-creating explosion in slow motion, which was done at a remote location and had so much force the shockwave was briefly visible.

"And your house," Irving added in commentary over the footage. "And the neighbor's houses, and their neighbor's houses, and…"

* * *

Ginger and Baljeet were enjoying their lunch when Irving wandered onscreen walking incredibly carefully as he carried something in his hands.

"Whatcha got there, Irv," Ginger asked.

"Shh, don't distract me," he told her urgently. "I am carrying two of the most dangerous substances known to man that are legally sold at supermarkets everywhere!"

Baljeet stood up and grabbed Irving's hands, showing what he was carrying: a salt shaker.

"Last I checked, table salt was not on the list of substances you cannot walk through security with at the airport," Baljeet told him.

"Ha ha," Irving said sarcastically. "Table salt itself may be innocent, but their components are a whole other matter."

"Irving, chill out," Ginger told him. "It's not like it's poison."

"Oh no, it's far worse than that," Irving replied. "Let's break it down, shall we? Salt is actually a chemical compound called sodium chloride. Take the chloride part first. Never mind the fact that as a gas chlorine is toxic to human beings, what happens when we combine it with a particularly innocent element like, say, hydrogen?"

Before either Ginger or Baljeet could respond, Irving placed a small beaker on the table between them that had about an inch of clear liquid of some kind in it.

"We get hydrochloric acid," Irving told them. "One of the more corrosive acids known to man. Observe."

Irving dropped a piece of aluminum foil into the acid. It immediately sizzled and melted into the acid, letting off a gas that he then lit with a lighter he had on hand. It burned a very faint flame briefly before going out.

"What the heck was that," Ginger asked, reflexively covering her nose and mouth.

"Just hydrogen gas," Irving told her. "Hence the very faint flame. The point is chlorine is one dangerous, volatile element. And as for sodium…"

Irving walked over a ways to a bucket of water. He put on some thick, protective gloves and, using a pair of tongs, picked up a small chunk of something silver-colored.

"This is a small chunk of pure sodium," he told the camera. "All that's in this bucket is plain ol' water."

Irving dropped the sodium into the water and ran. The sodium sizzled in the water briefly and then suddenly exploded in a shower of sparks. Irving stepped back in front of the camera again.

"Think about that the next time you reach for the salt shaker at the dinner table," he said with a smirk.

"Suddenly I am seeing the benefits of a low-sodium diet," Baljeet added.

"Or even a no-sodium diet," Ginger also added.

* * *

As the episode wrapped up, Baljeet breathed a sigh of relief. He was completely unaccustomed to being the center of attention and wasn't sure it was something he wanted to have happen to him too often.

"That turned out pretty good," Isabella said. "Do you think anyone else liked it?"

"Hey look, it's one of the NerdSmashers," a random student called out. Suddenly a crowd of about a dozen kids surrounded Baljeet, all trying to make some small piece of conversation with him at the same time.

"I think there's a good chance," Phineas said, watching the impromptu fan gathering. "I just hope the fame doesn't go to his head."

Phineas was answered by a cry from Baljeet that was equal parts confusion, frustration, and abject fear at his sudden boost in popularity.

"I doubt we'll have to worry about that," Ferb quipped.


	5. Chapter 5

After just one week's worth of airing NerdSmashers, it was clear Baljeet's stock was on the rise at school. Random people he'd never met before now greeted him in the halls. A fledgling NerdSmashers fan club had started up and Baljeet found himself being followed a few times every day by a small group representing them. And then there were the Post-It note fan messages left on his locker door. Early in the week there had been maybe two or three. It now being Friday, his locker door was practically wallpapered in Post-It notes of all colors. It had been enough attention that Baljeet made the decision to retain Buford's services once again as his "Angry Wall of Meat" in case anyone got too carried away with their fandom of the show. Payment was made in the form of splitting his secret admirer's treats with Buford, which proved to be more than enough motivation for the massive bully.

"So if you've got me for security, what're fanboy and Ginger doin' to protect themselves," Buford asked as he chowed down on his share of the treat for the day, which were once again cupcakes.

"Irving I am not so concerned about," Baljeet told him. "He mentioned something about ninja training from his older brother, but I am skeptical of that."

"You want me to keep an eye on him just in case?"

"No, I do not think that will be necessary."

"How about Ginger?"

Baljeet thought for a moment about how Ginger might be handling her own newfound fame at school.

"She is a former Fireside Girl so I know she is capable," he mused. "But all the same, I am sure she has been drawing much more attention than either Irving or I. She is quite pretty, after all."

"Heh, say no more. I'll check up on her for ya."

Baljeet nodded as he stopped outside a classroom door. "Thanks, Buford. Well, this is my Geometry classroom."

"Just gimme a buzz when you need me again, dude," Buford told him, giving him a quick fist bump before heading off again. He decided to go looking for Ginger just for the heck of it. It didn't take much searching to find her, as she was at her locker talking on her cell phone to someone in what was clearly a foreign language.

"_Onee-san ni wa kankei nai deshou_," she said, sounding annoyed. "_Un, dai suki desu kedo…mada jishin ga nain desu. Mou…onee-san kara kikitakunai wa yo. Ara, mou konna jikan? Gomen, onee-san, mou sugu jugyou ga hajimarimasu. Ato de hanashimashou. Un. Bai bai._"

She flipped the phone closed and muttered to herself some more in Japanese before realizing that Buford was standing behind her. Despite Baljeet's assurances, he still unnerved her a great deal. She did her best to hide her nervousness as she turned to face him.

"Hey Buford," she said, trying to sound casual. "Something up?"

"Just checkin' up on ya is all," he told her. "Who was on the phone?"

"Oh, that was just my older sister Stacy. She's such a pain, I swear. She tries to give me advice about stuff she has no business trying to give advice on."

As she talked, Ginger tried to grab her things from her locker for her next class without looking. It proved to be a costly mistake as she fumbled her books and spilled half the contents of her locker onto the floor. She stifled a curse in Japanese as she quickly started picking things up. Buford instinctively stooped down to help, but stopped as he spotted something. It was a small notepad of lavender-colored paper; very familiar-looking lavender-colored paper. He picked it up and held onto it while Ginger reassembled her locker.

"Sorry about that," she said, still feeling jittery. "I'm usually not such a klutz. Um…something's missing still, though. Where's…"

"You lookin' for this," Buford asked, holding up the notepad. Ginger's eyes went wide as she quickly snatched the pad from him, put it into her locker, and slammed the door shut. That was the last bit of proof Buford needed.

"So it's you, huh," he asked, folding his arms. "Guess that figures. Explains why they put you in the show too."

"Y-y-you're not going to get mad, are you," Ginger asked, positively terrified now.

"Cool your jets already, I ain't gonna do nothin' to you or 'Jeet."

"Really?"

"Really really."

Ginger just about passed out as she leaned back against her locker. Suddenly a huge chunk of her worries just dissolved and she felt a level of relief she hadn't experienced in a long time. Perhaps she could relax a little bit about the whole deal now.

"So when are you gonna tell him?"

And just like that the tension came right back.

"Um…when the time is right…" she said quietly, not making eye contact with him.

Buford rolled his eyes and shook his head at her. "What're ya waitin' for, an engraved invitation?"

"I just want us to be able to be together without worrying what everyone in school thinks about it. Thanks to the TV show things have come a long way, but…I'm still not sure I'm ready just yet."

Buford felt like he wanted to punch something, but he refrained. "You're drivin' him crazy, you know. On top of still having his secret admirer, he's takin' a liking to you anyway."

"What? Baljeet…likes me?"

"Ain't no doubt about it. I came down here to check on ya 'cuz he asked me to, for cryin' out loud."

"Baljeet asked you to check up on me?"

"You guys are all more popular these days thanks to that show. He wanted to make sure any fans or whatever weren't buggin' ya."

"Wow. I had no idea…thank you, Buford."

"Hey, you wanna thank me? Go tell nerd boy the truth."

"I…that is…maybe I…" Ginger could only fumble with words as she tried to make up her mind on what to do.

Buford clenched his fists briefly, but exhaled and released them. He looked directly at Ginger then. "Look, I'm gonna make this real simple. I'm givin' you 'till the end of the day to tell him yourself. If ya don't, I'm tellin' him. One way or another, this sneakin' around stuff's gonna end today, you got it?"

Ginger swallowed hard as she processed Buford's ultimatum. So many parts of her were still not ready for this, but in spite of all those parts screaming at her to put it off the only part she listened to was the one telling her exactly the same thing Buford had; it was time.

"I got it, Buford," she told him, slowly smiling as she grew steadily more confident in her decision. "You won't have to do it. I'll tell him."

Buford looked at her with a scrutinizing eye for a few moments before finally cracking a smile at her.

"You and him are gonna be just fine," he told her. "You look good together, and I can tell ya both like each other."

"I can't speak for Baljeet, but I do care about him a lot. More than I can possibly say in words."

"You gonna take good care of him? He's important to me too, ya know."

"I know. He's your nerd right?"

"No. Well, yes, but that ain't all he is. He's also…my best friend."

For the first time, Ginger could see what Baljeet had meant when he said Buford wasn't all bad. In fact, he was quite the stalwart friend to the Indian boy who she so dearly cared about.

"I promise, Buford, I will always take good care of him," she told him with a smile.

Buford smiled back at her and nodded. "You're okay in my book, missy. Anyone ever bugs you, you call me. I'll set 'em straight."

"I'll keep that in mind. Thanks. Anyway, I'm seriously late for class now."

"Need someone to help you get there?"

"I should be okay, thanks."

Ginger finally collected her books properly from her locker and began walking towards her next class, but stopped and looked back at Buford for a moment.

"By the way," she told him. "You should look Milly up sometime."

"Anderson," Buford said, saying the girl's last name as if it were a question. "Why's that?"

"Why do you think?"

Ginger winked at him briefly before she turned down the hall to rush to her class. Buford puzzled for a minute as he walked off in the opposite direction wondering what she'd meant. When it finally dawned on him what she'd been implying, his face turned as red as a tomato. He immediately began heading for the shower rooms at the gymnasium at a brisk pace. A cold shower was suddenly sounding like a really good idea to him.

* * *

Baljeet gripped the note tightly in his hand as he waited just outside the school. The autumn air was cool and crisp, but he was far too preoccupied to register whether it was cold at all. Today was the first time he'd gotten two letters from his admirer, and apparently it would also be the last time that would happen. The letter expressly told him to wait until after the buses had left for the day, and that it was time for them to finally meet face-to-face. So here he was, alone outside the school simply waiting. The buses were all long gone and only a few other people were wandering about the campus.

He felt a perfect half-and-half mixture of excitement and anxiety. Isabella and Gretchen had never found out who it was, and he'd been so busy with other activities as well as school work that he'd had little to no time to try and figure it out any more himself. As his mind and heart began to race, he didn't even register the person walking up behind him until she spoke.

"Waiting for someone," a voice asked him from behind, breaking the seemingly interminable silence. Baljeet startled a bit, but relaxed when he saw it was Ginger.

"Oh, heh, yes," he said, trying to quell his nerves. "I am supposed to meet someone here anytime now."

"Someone you know?"

"Not yet, but soon I hope. Remember when I showed you the letters from that secret admirer?"

Ginger nodded. "Oh yeah. So you're finally meeting her today?"

"I hope so. I have so much I want to tell her, but especially about how much that first letter she left for me meant to me. I still read it every day. Would you like to hear it?"

"Sure thing."

Baljeet fished in his bag for his collection of letters and produced the first letter from the batch, looking it over again as if it were a treasured possession. He unfolded it, cleared his throat, and began reading.

"No matter what," he said as he began to read it aloud.

"Know that I will always take care of you," Ginger said, interrupting him. Baljeet felt his entire world stop as he fixated on Ginger, who stood before him with her eyes closed and her hands folded in front of her as she continued to recite the contents of the letter by heart.

"Please enjoy the cookies, I made them myself. I will try to have something new for you later this week. Love, Ginger Hirano."

Baljeet was suddenly aware that his jaw had gone slightly slack and he quickly closed his mouth, though he still couldn't take his eyes off of her. He honestly didn't know what he was more surprised at: Ginger's confession or his own obliviousness to what now seemed obvious.

"This might seem like it's coming out of the blue to you," she said in a quivering voice as she opened her eyes again. "But this is a moment I've been dreaming about for years."

"But…why me," Baljeet asked. "That is the one thing I have not been able to understand through all of this. Why me? I am not what most teenage girls look for in a boyfriend."

"Maybe not, but you're what I've been looking for," Ginger told him, walking slowly towards him as she continued. "Most girls want the cute boys or the bad boys or the adventurous boys…not me. I don't just want a fling or a romance with someone who's got all the complexity of cardboard. I've always wanted to be with someone who was smart, responsible, and who had a future he was planning for and working towards. I've wanted to be with someone who was stable. I want someone like that because I know I could trust them with my heart. So from that perspective, you are the most wonderful and attractive young man in the entire Tri-State Area to me…and I like- no, that's not right."

Ginger closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and looked directly into Baljeet's eyes as she stood right in front of him.

"I love you, Baljeet," she told him. "From the bottom of my heart."

Despite feeling overwhelmed by the weight of Ginger's feelings for him, Baljeet reached for her. Their hands touched first, fingers lacing together as they pulled close enough together that their foreheads touched.

"I can only hope I'm always worthy of such a beautiful gift as your love, Ginger," Baljeet told her quietly. "And I can only hope the feelings I have for you are at least equal to what you feel for me."

"I don't think you'll have anything to worry about," Ginger replied.

Their first kiss was brief, as if they were both testing waters that they still weren't sure would be all that welcoming. Their second kiss lingered slightly, once they felt more comfortable and accustomed to the feeling. Their third kiss went on and on and on as they both now immersed themselves in the new sensations it brought them.

* * *

Having been too preoccupied with her own date that weekend, which had been fantastic like all her other dates with Phineas, Isabella didn't know how well things had gone between Baljeet and Ginger. All she had heard was from Ginger midday on Saturday that they had met each other's families and were going out on their first date that night. It now being lunchtime Monday, her curiosity was at an absolute peak. As she and Phineas neared the lunch table they saw Baljeet sitting alone, as usual, only instead of poring over a textbook he was looking through what looked like a tour book of Danville.

"Hey Baljeet," Isabella said, setting her tray down. "Whatcha doin'?"

"Oh, hi Isabella," Baljeet said, setting the book down for a moment. "And Phineas. I was just doing some reading on restaurants and sights around town. I need ideas for date locations."

"I guess the date went well, then," Phineas stated, happy for his friend.

"To say the least," Baljeet said, smiling genuinely as he thought of Ginger again. "We didn't do much, just dinner and a movie. I understand that's the standard for first dates."

Isabella blinked a few times. Something was different, but she couldn't place what.

"Believe me, we've been to plenty of movies so far," Phineas told him. "If I were you I'd start keeping an eye on movie trailers to find stuff you guys will like."

"I'm way ahead of you," Baljeet replied. "I spent a fair bit of Sunday night on the Internet watching movie trailers online. By the way, there's a new Space Adventure coming out next summer."

"I know, I saw that last week," Phineas said excitedly. "It's gonna be awesome!"

"You know I'm going," Baljeet replied, also excited.

Suddenly it dawned on Isabella. "Baljeet, you're…using contractions in your speech?"

"Yeah, I guess I am now," Baljeet said, blushing a little. "I don't know why I didn't do it sooner. Maybe I was just stuck on being so formal all the time. I think to an extent it reinforced my nerd image. I'm still a nerd, don't get me wrong, but now that I have Ginger with me…everything just seems so much easier now. I'm actually quite relaxed now."

"I think that's fantastic," Isabella told him. "You two really make a cute couple. If you need help with ideas for where to go this weekend, just let us know. We've got a ton of places we can recommend."

"Oh, I'm not planning for this weekend. We already have that set."

"Aha, so you're planning next weekend's date, then," Phineas said, nodding.

"No, we have that planned as well."

"Baljeet, how far ahead are you guys planning?"

"Well, right now we're working on August of next year. Actually, Ginger is doing the scheduling and organization. I'm just brainstorming ideas. She's really something else when it comes to planning and organization, you know? We planned out a lot of our future dates on our first date. It was quite the evening, let me tell you."

Isabella and Phineas gave each other a look of sheer disbelief, but decided rather than fight what was a decidedly losing battle to simply let Baljeet and Ginger do things however they saw fit. After all, love did come in all shapes, sizes, and forms. One of those forms was bound to be perfectly organized and scheduled in a day planner somewhere so as to keep such an adorable couple perfectly happy together.

_**The End.**_

* * *

**Author's Afterword**

I did way more research for this fic than I've ever done for a fic before. For those curious, no I am not Indian and I do not speak Hindi. The bits in the first chapter I looked up before I wrote them. According to one of the reviews I received for the fic, apparently I got things right so yea me!

Also, just to confirm, NerdSmashers is indeed based on Discovery Channel's series MythBusters, which is one of my favorite TV shows of all time. Science can indeed be entertaining! Especially when explosions are involved. :D

As for Ginger's Japanese here, and again for those curious, no I am not Japanese. However, I do speak Japanese quite well. I minored in the language in college and spent a year living in Tokyo. Here's a quick translation of what she said to Stacy:

"This is none of your business, sis. Yes, I do love him but...I still have no confidence. Oh I really don't want to hear this coming from you. Uh oh, it's getting late. Sorry, sis, class is gonna start soon. We'll talk later. Yeah. Bye-bye."

Before anyone asks, I likely will not be doing a separate story for Buford and Milly. Rather, I'll probably cover that bit as part of my summertime fic project, **Summer of Love**. Why Milly, though, and not the usual standby of Adyson? Let's just say a recent story by a fellow P&F author that I read and thoroughly enjoyed has given me a different inspiration for Miss Sweetwater's romantic future. To said author I will only say: you know who you are, you know precisely which story I'm talking about, and it is on like Donkey Kong.

Thank you to all of the wonderful readers and reviewers who've been leaving their praise and thoughts for this story so far, it has been a fantastic source of encouragement for my writing for this series. I hope the ending here is up to your expectations. And, of course, thank you to any and all future readers for your time and patronage. I hope you have enjoyed reading this story even half as much as I enjoyed writing it, and I hope you check out and enjoy my other stories as well. ^_^


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